Chapter 3: Introduction to Second Life - Communication Tools
Experts are fond of saying that most of human communication is conveyed in body language. While that may be true, good old fashioned words work
Much of the fun in SL is in communicating with other residents
very well for many purposes!
In Second Life, you can use a Local Chat facility to communicate with others whose avatars are near yours. You can make friends with others, and Instant Message (IM) private communications with them, and you can Communicate with Groups.
With the addition of a headset, you can converse with others. (A headset is essential for the rich media available in Second Life, at any rate, so whether or not you believe most of human communication is non-verbal, you'll want to plug in a headset.)
Using Local Chat
To communicate with someone in your immediate vicinity, you can use local chat. By default, local chat communications are limited to about twenty meters. To use local chat, key return, or click on the chat entry box (at the lower left hand side of your viewer) and type something in the box. Key return again.
You can type modifiers in the chat box to change the distance your communications are broadcasted. To reduce the distance to ten meters, you can use the modifier "/w" to whisper. To shout to a range of 98 meters, type "/sho" and SL will complete the word shout. But take care: unless the message is quite important, others very well may be annoyed.
Local chat has limited usefulness because of the "clutter" produced when more than two avatars are chatting. In classrooms and public areas, in fact, for most purposes, you will probably use Instant Messaging (IM).
Making Friends
If you meet someone you'd like to contact again, add him or her as a friend by right-clicking on the avatar and selecting "Add friend" from the pop-up menu. Friends can use Instant Messaging.
Instant Messaging
To send an Instant Message (IM) to a friend, click the People Tab, then the Friends tab. Select the friend from your contact list, then click IM.
Instant Messages can be seen regardless of the distance between residents.
Communicating with Groups
When you have joined a Group, you can talk to the entire group at one time using group chat. Click the My Groups tab at the top of the People window and select the Group you want to address. Click the Group Chat button at the bottom of the screen to initiate conversation.
Using SL Voice
Plug in a microphone or headset. Click Me on the menu bar at the top of the screen. Select Preferences, then click the Sound & Media tab. Check Enabled to the right of the Voice Chat volume slider. You select your input device from the drop-down menu, then choose a push-to-talk button in the Advanced tab on the menu to the left.
Chapter 3: Introduction to Second Life - Communication Tools
Experts are fond of saying that most of human communication is conveyed in body language. While that may be true, good old fashioned words work
In Second Life, you can use a Local Chat facility to communicate with others whose avatars are near yours. You can make friends with others, and Instant Message (IM) private communications with them, and you can Communicate with Groups.
With the addition of a headset, you can converse with others. (A headset is essential for the rich media available in Second Life, at any rate, so whether or not you believe most of human communication is non-verbal, you'll want to plug in a headset.)
Using Local Chat
To communicate with someone in your immediate vicinity, you can use local chat. By default, local chat communications are limited to about twenty meters. To use local chat, key return, or click on the chat entry box (at the lower left hand side of your viewer) and type something in the box. Key return again.
You can type modifiers in the chat box to change the distance your communications are broadcasted. To reduce the distance to ten meters, you can use the modifier "/w" to whisper. To shout to a range of 98 meters, type "/sho" and SL will complete the word shout. But take care: unless the message is quite important, others very well may be annoyed.
Local chat has limited usefulness because of the "clutter" produced when more than two avatars are chatting. In classrooms and public areas, in fact, for most purposes, you will probably use Instant Messaging (IM).
Making Friends
If you meet someone you'd like to contact again, add him or her as a friend by right-clicking on the avatar and selecting "Add friend" from the pop-up menu. Friends can use Instant Messaging.
Instant Messaging
To send an Instant Message (IM) to a friend, click the People Tab, then the Friends tab. Select the friend from your contact list, then click IM.
Instant Messages can be seen regardless of the distance between residents.
Communicating with Groups
When you have joined a Group, you can talk to the entire group at one time using group chat. Click the My Groups tab at the top of the People window and select the Group you want to address. Click the Group Chat button at the bottom of the screen to initiate conversation.
Using SL Voice
Plug in a microphone or headset. Click Me on the menu bar at the top of the screen. Select Preferences, then click the Sound & Media tab. Check Enabled to the right of the Voice Chat volume slider. You select your input device from the drop-down menu, then choose a push-to-talk button in the Advanced tab on the menu to the left.
Continue to Chapter 3: Introduction to Second Life - Searching and Finding